Alberto Gonzales Still Focused On Throwing People In Jail For Attempted Piracy

from the this-is-his-most-pressing-need? dept

With Attorney General Alberto Gonzales hopping from scandal to scandal within the administration, he seems to have decided that, rather than take on various important issues this country faces, to focus much of his spare time these days on making intellectual property laws stricter. The latest is that he gave a talk at an event about intellectual property where he went on and on about the importance of clamping down on "intellectual property theft." He does a fantastic job showing that he doesn't actually understand the topic, and simply repeats a very one-sided stance on the topic. He says that it's stealing, rather than infringement. Of course, the Supreme Court disagrees, but why would you expect the Attorney General to know that? He also talks about every infringed copy as if it's a lost sale. It's the standard corporate line and shows that he either doesn't understand the economics at hand or he just feels better ignoring it (or both). About the only good thing in the article is that it sounds like the folks in Congress are so disgusted with Gonzales that they have no intention of paying any attention to his proposed solutions at all.
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  • identicon
    Overcast, 28 Jun 2007 @ 10:11pm

    You would think there are more pressing issues at hand. Like crooked politicians, drugs, murder, gang violence, terrorists..

    But yeah, that's a real important issue too..

    lol

    link to this | view in chronology ]

    • identicon
      Betaflame, 29 Jun 2007 @ 8:41am

      Re: the heart of the matter

      "You would think there are more pressing issues at hand. Like crooked politicians, drugs, murder, gang violence, terrorists.." I think I see the problem.

      link to this | view in chronology ]

  • identicon
    rEdEyEz, 28 Jun 2007 @ 10:37pm

    Attorney General Lobbyist?

    Isn't this clown supposed to enforce laws?

    Why is he pimping IP legislation to Congress? The Dept of Homeland Security now reports to the RIAA??!!

    Holy shiat, I wonder if he has secret tunnel in his office for the extended family, too.

    "If you give me a boatload of cash, I'll see what I can do. Meet me in the lobby..."

    link to this | view in chronology ]

  • identicon
    reed, 29 Jun 2007 @ 1:29am

    This just in...

    Alberto has decided to keep suspected "pirates" at the infamous Guantanamo Bay. He will personally use waterboarding and stress positions on young Americans in order to root out the ringleader behind the Evil Axis of Piraters!

    The Evil Axis of Pirates consists of Russia, China, and large groups of teenage boys in America which are all shown to be in direct contact with Al-Qaeda. The terrorist use their profits from illegal software sales to put up anti-American web sites that criticize superior US policies because "they hate our freedom".

    Alberto has also announced the formation of a new department he will head known as DOUCHE (Department Over Universal Copyright Hegemony Entitlement). In his new post he will ensure that America's prisons will soon be overflowing with newly created criminals.

    link to this | view in chronology ]

  • identicon
    Beefcake, 29 Jun 2007 @ 8:23am

    UW Comes the Aid of RIAA

    This was in the Seattle Post Intelligencer a few days ago. A bit scary that a major daily rag still can't see the other side. It's presented wholly as the University of Washington doing something upstanding and good, when in fact all they are doing is helping the RIAA with their current extortion tactics.

    http://seattlepi.nwsource.com/local/321311_uw27.html

    For a REALLY good time, read the comments. Even Seattle doesn't seem to get it.

    link to this | view in chronology ]

  • identicon
    Anonymous Coward, 29 Jun 2007 @ 12:29pm

    Token.

    link to this | view in chronology ]

  • identicon
    Don, 29 Jun 2007 @ 12:34pm

    There are two problems with Gonzales's efforts:

    1) One, they are doomed to failure. One only has to look at our 20 year old "War on Drugs" (which have done next to nothing to prevent drug use, but now routinely allow murders and especially sex offenders out of prison early to make room for mandatory sentencing of pot smokers) and Zero Tolerance (where kids are now kicked out of school for nail clippers or aspirin, but did nothing to prevent the shooting in Va. earlier this year) to see how well this "War on IP" will pan out.

    2) Pissing off a generation of increasingly computer literate people (where you have ten year olds who can often write their own code, and 12 year olds who can build their own browsers) in a society that is increasingly computer dependent, is NOT a very bright idea. Given the numerous reports of lack of security and protection (from GAO reports, stories of identity theft, and other sources) from both major industry (TJX, Checkpoint, ect.) and especially government agencies (Pentagon and DHS being repeatedly hacked, FBI and others failing GAO audits) this country is in serious risk of being being wholly and royally FUBARed if such individuals and groups decided to launch the sort of "cyber assault" that was directed against Estonia (and given the current direction of our policies in this country, I see such an event as a very likely probability).

    link to this | view in chronology ]

  • identicon
    Eludium-Q36, 29 Jun 2007 @ 5:44pm

    It's His Bailout Strategy

    Look, Alberto is shallow and transparent as we all now know. Isn't clear to everyone he's auditioning for an overpaid executive role within the MP/RI/AA when he's inevitably pushed out of his AG gig ?! What a pathetic bug he is.

    link to this | view in chronology ]

  • identicon
    Person, 6 Feb 2008 @ 6:14pm

    here is the IP Address of a pirater who sells illegal stuff

    76.2.132.148

    link to this | view in chronology ]


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